Abstract
As a leading player in the international community and the projected economic powerhouse in the twenty-first century, China's significance in the international community has been recognized around the world. The construction of its legal system, particularly the criminal justice system, has also received increasing global attention. As the cornerstone of the criminal justice system, the courts and sentencing laws and practices underlie many of the fundamental ideas of a fair and just legal system. This article reviews research on courts and sentencing in contemporary China published after 1990, focusing on the following three areas: (1) research on law and legal reforms with regard to courts and sentencing; (2) research on the determinants of criminal sentencing; and (3) research on capital punishment.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alford, W. (1995). Tasselled loafers for barefoot lawyers: Transformation and tension in the world of Chinese legal workers. The China Quarterly, 141, 22–38.
Burns, J. (1999). The people's republic of china at 50: National political reform. The China Quarterly, 159, 580–594.
Clarke, D. (1995). The execution of civil judgments in China. The China Quarterly, 141, 65–81.
Clarke, D., & Feinerman, J. (1995). Antagonistic contradictions: Criminal law and human rights in China. The China Quarterly, 141, 135–154.
Dicks, A. (1995). Compartmentalized law and judicial restraint: An inductive view of some jurisdictional barriers to reform. The China Quarterly, 141, 82–109.
Fu, H. L. (1998). Criminal defence in China: The possible impact of the 1996 criminal procedural reform law. The China Quarterly, 153, 31–48.
Hood, R. (2002). The death penalty: A worldwide perspective. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Jiang, S., Lambert, E., & Wang, J. (2007). Capital punishment views in China and the U.S.: A preliminary study among college students. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 51, 1–14.
Keith, R. (1991). Chinese politics and the new theory of “rule of law”. The China Quarterly, 125, 109–118.
Liang, B., Lu, H., Miethe, T. D., & Zhang, L. (2006). Sources of variation in pro-death penalty attitudes in China: An exploratory study of Chinese students at home and abroad. British Journal of Criminology, 46, 119–130.
Liu, P., & Situ, Y. (2001). Mixing inquisitorial and adversarial models: Changes in criminal procedure in a changing China. In J. Liu, L. Zhang, & S. F. Messner (Eds.), Crime and social control in a changing China (pp. 133–150). Westport: Greenwood.
Lu, H., & Drass, K. A. (2002). Transience and the disposition of theft cases in China. Justice Quarterly, 19, 69–96.
Lu, H., & Gunnison, E. (2003). Power, corruption, and the legal process in China. International Criminal Justice Review, 13, 28–49.
Lu, H., Liu, J., & Crowther, A. (2006). Female criminal victimization and criminal justice response in China. British Journal of Criminology, 46, 859–874.
Lu, H., & Liang, B. (2008). Legal responses to trafficking in narcotics and other narcotic offenses in China. International Criminal Justice Review (in press).
Lu, H., & Miethe, T. D. (2007). China’s death penalty: History, law, and contemporary practices. New York: Taylor & Francis Group.
Lu, H., & Miethe, T. D. (2002). Legal representation and criminal processing in China. British Journal of Criminology, 42, 267–280.
Lu, H., & Miethe, T. D. (2003). Confessions and criminal case disposition in China. Las & Society Review, 37(3), 549–578.
Lu, H., & Zhang, L. (2005). Death penalty in China: The law and the practice. Journal of Criminal Justice, 33, 367–376.
O'Brien, K., & Li, L. (1995). The politics of lodging complaints in rural China. The China Quarterly, 143, 756–783.
Pei, M. (1997). Citizens v. Mandarins: Administrative litigation in China. The China Quarterly, 152, 832–862.
Potter, P. (1999). The Chinese legal system: Continuing commitment to the primacy of state power. The China Quarterly, 159, 673–683.
Potter, P. (1994). Riding the tiger: Legitimacy and legal culture in Post-Mao China. The China Quarterly, 138, 325–358.
Scobell, A. (1990). The death penalty in Post-Mao China. The China Quarterly, 123, 503–520.
Trevaskes, S. (2007). Severe and swift justice in China. British Journal of Criminology, 47, 23–41.
Trevaskes, S. (2004). Propaganda work in Chinese Courts. Punishment & Society, 6, 5–21.
Trevaskes, S. (2003a). Yanda 2001: Form and strategy in a Chinese anti-crime campaign. The Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology, 36, 272–292.
Trevaskes, S. (2003b). Public sentencing rallies in China: The symbolizing of punishment and justice in a socialist state. Crime, Law & Social Change, 39, 359–382.
Yue, L. (2002). Legislation and practice of sentencing in China. In C. Tata, & N. Hutton (Eds.),Sentencing and Society: International Perspectives (pp. 133–138). Burlington: Ashgate.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Lu, H., Kelly, B. Courts and sentencing research on contemporary China. Crime Law Soc Change 50, 229–243 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10611-008-9132-6
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10611-008-9132-6